Maxcy-Rosenau-Last Public Health and Preventive Medicine, 15th Edition Doody's Expert Review Review Questionnaire ISBN: 9780071441988 ISBN-10: 0071441980 Copyright: 2008 Edition: 15th Editor: Wallace, Robert B. Doody's Expert Review    Score: 84 Doody's Star Rating™ and Doody's Expert Review provide by Doody Enterprises, Inc. Reviewer: Susan Buchanan,  MD  (University of Illinois at Chicago School of Public Health) Description This comprehensive tome updates the previous 1998 edition by including timely topics such as disaster preparedness and the public health effects of global warming. It should be considered a comprehensive review of the field of public health. Purpose The purpose of this update is to continue to provide public health training that is relevant to evolving issues in the field. This book introduces and expands on growing topics such as global warming, behavioral science in public health, and chronic diseases. Audience Graduate-level students of public health are the intended audience. The book is extremely well written and at a level of complexity that may be a challenge to students for whom English is not their first language. The editors have recruited contributors who are leaders in their fields. Features The book covers academic aspects of public health such as toxicology, biostatistics, and public health infrastructure, but also includes relevant clinical and administrative topics such as infectious diseases, asbestosis, and public health management tools. Highlights include the comprehensive coverage of tobacco, alcohol, and drug abuse issues, and global infections such as malaria and zoonoses. Unfortunately, some of the graphics are clearly lifted from the Internet and are fuzzy or distorted. Some of the clinical topics, such as diabetes, focus more on the diagnosis and treatment of individuals than on the public health impact. Assessment This is an excellent, comprehensive overview of the field of public health for use by graduate level students. The exhaustive nature of the book has necessitated a small font size and the graphics are often not up to par. Nevertheless, as the editor iterates: the breadth of public health is widening with new diseases, emerging knowledge of old diseases, and societal changes requiring new methods of public health control. This book covers all aspects in a relevant, useful manner. Review Questionnaire Range Question Score 1-10 Are the author's objectives met? 8 1-10 Rate the worthiness of those objectives. 10 1-5 Is this written at an appropriate level? 5 1-5 Is there significant duplication? (1=significant, 5=insignificant) 4 1-5 Are there significant omissions? (1=significant, 5=insignificant) 4 1-5 Rate the authority of the authors. 5 1-5 Are there sufficient illustrations? 3 1-5 Rate the pedagogic value of the illustrations. 4 1-5 Rate the print quality of the illustrations. 2 1-5 Are there sufficient references? 3 1-5 Rate the currency of the references. 5 1-5 Rate the pertinence of the references. 5 1-5 Rate the helpfulness of the index. 3 1-5 If important in this specialty, rate the physical appearance of the book 3 1-10 Is this a worthwhile contribution to the field? 10 1-10 If this is a 2nd or later edition, is this new edition needed? 10 ©2010 Doody Enterprises, Inc.